1.1 GACE 735 Exam Facts, Testlets, and GaPSC Standards

1.1 GACE 735 Exam Facts, Testlets, and GaPSC Standards

Quick Summary: The Georgia Assessments for the Certification of Educators (GACE) Special Education General Curriculum (P-12) examination (Test 735) is the state-mandated licensing assessment for Georgia special educators. Delivered via computer at Pearson VUE centers, the combined exam features 100 selected-response items divided across three modular testlets (407, 408, and 503) completed in 2.5 hours of testing time within a total appointment of 2 hours and 45 minutes. Scores are reported on a 100–300 scale; to pass, you must earn a cumulative score of at least 220 and also meet the minimum required score on each testlet.

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Administrative Framework: GaPSC and Evaluation Systems of Pearson

The Georgia Assessments for the Certification of Educators (GACE) are developed and administered through a partnership between the Georgia Professional Standards Commission (GaPSC) and Evaluation Systems of Pearson. The GaPSC is the state constitutional authority charged with establishing educator preparation standards, approving teacher education programs, setting licensing requirements, and enforcing the Georgia Code of Ethics for Educators. Evaluation Systems of Pearson operates the psychometric design, test security protocols, scoring engines, and test administration logistics.

Examinations are delivered year-round by appointment in secure, proctored Pearson VUE authorized test centers across Georgia and nationwide. Test 735 is a test-center assessment; Evaluation Systems currently offers online proctoring only for the GACE Paraprofessional assessment, so plan on traveling to a test center. Earning a passing score on the GACE Special Education General Curriculum assessment is a prerequisite for obtaining initial educator certification in Georgia for educators who provide specialized academic instruction, collaborative co-teaching, and consultative services to students with mild-to-moderate disabilities in kindergarten through grade 12.

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Structure of the Combined Assessment (Test 735)

The GACE Special Education General Curriculum assessment can be taken as a single, comprehensive combined examination designated as Test 735. When registered under the combined code, candidates complete all three modular testlets during a single appointment window.

Candidates must carefully distinguish between the appointment length and testing time. When all three testlets are taken in one session the appointment runs 2 hours and 45 minutes: the testing clock runs for exactly 150 minutes, and Pearson adds 15 minutes per testing session for the navigation tutorial and for reading and electronically signing the mandatory Non-Disclosure Agreement (NDA). If you register for fewer testlets, your session shortens accordingly — for example, Testlet 407 alone is a 30-minute test inside a 45-minute session.

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Detailed Breakdown of the Three Modular Testlets

Test 735 is segmented into three distinct, independently timed and scored modular testlets. Understanding the distinct scope, weight, and timing of each testlet enables targeted preparation and effective test-day pacing.

Testlet 407: Assessment and Progress Monitoring

Testlet 407 represents approximately 20% of the total examination (roughly 20 items) with an allotted active testing time of 30 minutes. This module evaluates an educator's technical knowledge of psychometric measurement, diagnostic evaluation, and data-driven instructional decision-making. Core competencies include:

• Measurement Principles: Understanding raw scores, standard scores, percentile ranks, stanines, age/grade equivalents, standard error of measurement (SEM), test-retest reliability, internal consistency, and content/construct validity.
• Evaluation Instruments: Selecting and interpreting norm-referenced psychoeducational batteries, criterion-referenced inventories, authentic assessments, and ecological evaluations.
• Curriculum-Based Measurement (CBM): Designing probes for reading (oral reading fluency), mathematics (computation and concepts), and written expression; calculating trend lines and aim lines using the dual-discrepancy framework.
• Assessment Accommodations: Differentiating between allowable testing accommodations (e.g., text-to-speech, extended time, oral response) that preserve test construct validity versus modifications that invalidate standardized norms.

Testlet 408: Instructional Approaches to Learning Across the Curriculum

Testlet 408 accounts for approximately 40% of the total examination (roughly 40 items) with an allotted testing time of 60 minutes. This module focuses on pedagogical methodology, classroom environment, and individualized intervention delivery across content domains. Core competencies include:

• Evidence-Based Instruction: Applying explicit/direct instruction, the gradual release of responsibility model ("I do, We do, You do"), task analysis, systematic prompting hierarchies, and stimulus fading.
• Curricular Frameworks: Universal Design for Learning (UDL) principles (multiple means of engagement, representation, and action/expression) and Tier 2/3 tiered interventions within a Multi-Tiered System of Supports (MTSS).
• Domain-Specific Pedagogy: Structured literacy routines (phonological awareness, explicit phonics, orthographic mapping, morphology, vocabulary, and metacognitive comprehension strategies) and the Concrete-Representational-Abstract (CRA) instructional continuum in mathematics.
• Behavioral Supports & Classroom Management: Functional Behavioral Assessments (FBAs), antecedent-behavior-consequence (ABC) data collection, function-based Behavior Intervention Plans (BIPs), token economies, differential reinforcement, and School-Wide Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports (PBIS).
• Secondary Transition: Writing compliant Indicator 13 transition plans, conducting age-appropriate transition assessments, formulating measurable postsecondary goals, and coordinating community-based instruction (CBI).

Testlet 503: Foundations and Professional Knowledge in Special Education

Testlet 503 constitutes approximately 40% of the total examination (roughly 40 items) with an allotted testing time of 60 minutes. This module assesses the philosophical, legal, historical, and ethical foundations of special education. Core competencies include:

• Human Development & Learning Theories: Cognitive stages (Piaget), social constructivism and the zone of proximal development (Vygotsky), psychosocial crises (Erikson), and social-ecological systems (Bronfenbrenner).
• Disability Characteristics: Diagnostic criteria, etiologies, and academic/behavioral manifestations of the 13 federal disability categories under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), with particular emphasis on high-incidence conditions (Specific Learning Disabilities, Other Health Impairment, Speech or Language Impairment, Emotional and Behavioral Disorders, and mild Autism Spectrum Disorder).
• Federal and State Mandates: Statutory mandates under IDEA 2004 (FAPE, LRE, IEP, nondiscriminatory evaluation, parent participation, and procedural safeguards), Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, and the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA).
• Case Law: Landmark U.S. Supreme Court precedents, including Board of Education v. Rowley (1982), Endrew F. v. Douglas County School District (2017), Honig v. Doe (1988), and Forest Grove School District v. T.A. (2009).
• Ethics and Collaborative Partnerships: Co-teaching delivery models (parallel, station, team, alternative, and one teach/one assist), supervising and evaluating paraprofessionals, culturally responsive family collaboration, and adherence to the GaPSC Code of Ethics for Educators (Rule 505-6-.01).

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Testlet Comparison Matrix

The three testlets combine to provide a holistic assessment of a Georgia special education teacher's professional responsibilities:

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Scaled Scoring System and the Test 735 Passing Rule

GACE assessments do not report raw percentages of correct answers. Instead, raw scores (the total number of scored items answered correctly) are mathematically converted into a scaled score ranging from 100 to 300. This psychometric scaling accounts for minor variations in difficulty across different test forms administered across testing windows.

The Two-Part Passing Rule

Evaluation Systems states the passing requirement for Test 735 in two parts, and both must be satisfied:

1. A cumulative score of at least 220 across the assessment, and
2. The floor for each individual testlet — the minimum required score Pearson sets for Testlet 407, Testlet 408, and Testlet 503 individually.

PASS = (cumulative total >= 220)  AND  (407 >= floor)  AND  (408 >= floor)  AND  (503 >= floor)

The practical consequence is the same trap in both directions: a strong showing on the two 40-item testlets does not rescue a below-floor performance on the 20-item Testlet 407, and clearing all three floors does not by itself guarantee a passing cumulative total. Prepare every testlet to a comfortable margin rather than banking on averaging.

Induction vs. Professional Passing Levels

GACE score reports are built on a 100–300 scale, and historically GaPSC recognized two passing levels — Induction (220) and Professional (250). Candidates still see this language in older prep material, so it is worth knowing. What matters now is the current rule in GaPSC Rule 505-2-.24 (Special Georgia Requirements): "All passing scores earned on GACE assessments will be treated as Professional level scores even if the official score report reflects an Induction level score." In other words, once you pass, you do not have to retake Test 735 later to "upgrade" a 235 into a 250 — a passing score is a passing score for certification purposes. GaPSC also confirms that once a state-approved assessment is passed, it does not need to be retaken.

Banking Policy and Retakes

Because Test 735 uses the testlet model, Evaluation Systems reports a Testlet Performance Report each time you sit a testlet and a Comprehensive Assessment Report that carries your best attempt at each testlet plus your cumulative total:

• A testlet that meets its floor is banked; you re-register only for the testlet(s) still outstanding.
• You must take all three testlets for the assessment to be complete.
• Scores cannot be split across testing suppliers: because GACE moved from ETS to Evaluation Systems of Pearson, every testlet in the assessment must be passed with the same supplier to count toward Georgia certification (GaPSC).
• If you need to retake an assessment or a testlet, you must wait 30 days and complete the registration process again.

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Registration, Fees, and Georgia Credentialing Requirements

Registering for the GACE Special Education General Curriculum assessment requires establishing accounts with both the GaPSC (to obtain an official Georgia Educator ID number and testing eligibility approval via the MyPSC portal) and Evaluation Systems of Pearson (to schedule testing dates and submit payment).

Fee Structure

Pearson publishes a fee for each testlet plus a combined registration for taking all three in one appointment:

The three testlet fees sum to exactly $169 ($63 + $63 + $43), so the combined registration is not a price discount — its advantage is one trip and one 2-hour-45-minute appointment. Splitting the assessment across sessions is a legitimate strategy if you want to concentrate on one testlet at a time, but each session carries its own 15-minute tutorial and NDA overhead.

Integrated Georgia Certification Framework

Passing GACE Test 735 is one essential component of the comprehensive Georgia credentialing pathway. To obtain an Induction or Professional Teaching Certificate in Special Education General Curriculum (P-12), candidates must fulfill the complete regulatory sequence:

1. GaPSC Eligibility: Establish a MyPSC account and claim testing eligibility under the appropriate certification route (traditional educator preparation, GaTAPP alternative certification, or out-of-state reciprocity).
2. GACE Test 735 Content Mastery: Attain a cumulative score of at least 220 across Testlets 407, 408, and 503 while meeting each testlet's floor.
3. GACE Ethics for Teachers (Test 351, $30): Complete the modular, training-based ethics assessment covering GaPSC Rule 505-6-.01 ethical standards, professional boundaries, student safety, and reporting duties. (Older sources refer to this requirement by its retired ETS codes 350/360.)
4. Fingerprint & Criminal Background Clearance: Undergo Georgia Bureau of Investigation (GBI) and Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) background checks through the employing school district.
5. Special Education General Curriculum Scope: Certified educators are licensed to support students with Individualized Education Programs (IEPs) across all core content areas in general education co-taught classrooms, supportive resource rooms, and consultative settings from Pre-Kindergarten through 12th grade.